Professor Horoyuki Uchida

In recent years, global energy and environmental issues are major concerns that mankind is facing. The utilization of renewable energy sources, linking with a hydrogen-based society, has the potential to act as a countermeasure against such global issues. In due course, the production of hydrogen utilizing solar power and the application of hydrogen fuel cells, with their intrinsically clean operation, should play an important role. The Clean Energy Research Center, consisting of the Division of Fuel Cell Research, the Division of Solar Energy Conversion Research, and the Division of Energy Measurement Research, is promoting research that aims to realize such a hydrogen-based society.

In the Division of Fuel Cell Research, developing new materials and analyses for polymer electrolyte fuel cells, which have been commercialized for automobile and residential applications, are being performed, aiming to improve durability and performance. Several large national projects have been running with close collaboration with the Fuel Cell Nanomaterials Research Center, our associated Center. In addition, polymer electrolyte water electrolyzers using proton or anion conductive membranes have been investigated.

In the Division of Solar Energy Conversion Research, we have been investigating innovative photocatalytic materials for the conversion of solar energy to hydrogen through a water-splitting reaction, as well as its conversion to valuable chemicals through carbon dioxide reduction and to ammonia through nitrogen reduction. The utilization of unused, ambient thermal energy for energy harvesting is also being performed through the thermoelectric effect.

In the division of Energy Measurement Research, which was just launched in 2023, has been investigating analytical research on materials and functions related to clean energy utilization. In addition, the ionization methods for mass spectrometry and the novel ion beams for surface analysis are also investigated.

Most of the faculty members in the Center belong to the newly established Course of Clean Energy Chemistry in the Graduate School from 2024, and the Center will focus more and more on state-of-the-art research and education for undergraduate and graduate students in the Course of Clean Energy Chemistry and in the Graduate School of Master’s and Doctoral Courses to develop human resources with world-class hands-on research experience, powerful motivation, and the ability to promote research at a high level in the respective Division fields. To further enrich the education and research environments, an integrated 5-year doctoral development program, the Power Energy Professional Training Program or PEP, was launched in 2018 in cooperation with 13 universities throughout Japan, supported by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan (MEXT). Students in the PEP program can take advantage of several support systems, such as research assistant expenses, financial support for long-term overseas study, career paths for graduates, and so on.

Please see further information for the Center, including an overview and details for each Division.

Professor Hiroshi Irie